Observations From Patriots OTAs
FOXBORO (CBS) - Tuesday was Day 2 of the Patriots OTAs (organized team activities), and it was the first time the media was allowed to watch.
The first thing that struck me was how great shape Tom Brady appeared to be in. Now only was he his usual fired-up self, the QB looked slimmer and was throwing the ball extremely well.
The Pats offense did mostly passing drills, and Brady threw quite a bit to newcomers Danny Amendola and Michael Jenkins. It was strange not to see Brady throwing to Wes Welker, Rob Gronkowskior or Aaron Hernandez, as Welker is in Denver while Gronk and Hernandez are sidelined with injuries. Hernandez was at least out on the field though, but didn't take part in drills.
Read: Amendola Impressed With Brady's Arm Strength
As for Amendola, he looked was sharp on the field. He runs low to the ground and has solid speed.
Afterwards, the new receiver spoke to the media about getting drilled in the chest by Brady pass, which showed him how great of a passer Brady is. The two worked out earlier this off-season at USC, and Amendola is trying to do everything he can to build a relationship with his new quarterback.
He also got the standard replacing Welker question -- which he will get all year -- and handled it with ease.
"That's not something I need to worry about," said Amendola. "I'm worried about the playbook and getting the routes down and getting on the same page with my teammates. The good thing is, I don't have to worry about that stuff."
Vince Wilfork also spoke to the media, and the thing I took away is that he still has that passion and drive as his rookie year. As he said, when that gives away it's time to retire.
Aquib Talib was the final member of the Pats to talked, and he is happy to have an off-season and full training camp with the Patriots. That's something the cornerback didn't have last season after being acquired at the NFL trade deadline from Tampa.
The team will get tomorrow off before returning on Thursday. They'll have seven more days of OTAs over the next two weeks, and then a mandatory minicamp from June 11-13.
We're still about two months away from training camp, but it's great to have football back in the New England.
Follow WBZ-TV's Dan Roche on Twitter @RochieWBZ.
